At the Ice Cube Curling Center, a small but raucous crowd watched the Russian men’s curling team lose to Britain 7-4 on Monday morning. The 3,000-seat arena was a little more than half full, with Russians making up the bulk of the crowd. The atmosphere was a cacophony of “Ros-si-ya!” chants and air horns.

Some curling aficionados were aghast, however, at the timing of the Russian cheers. They cheered loudly when one of their curlers was sliding onto the ice to take his shot, which is the equivalent of cheering for a golfer while he’s teeing off. And they erupted in celebration when, in the sixth end, the Russians’ final stone stopped close to the dead center of the house — the area at the end of the ice that looks like a bull’s eye.

Little did they know why British fans were also cheering: The shot left Russia’s stone unprotected with three other British stones in the house, allowing the Brits to knock it away with their last shot for a four-point end. The mistake crushed Russia’s hopes for an upset.

Russia coach Roger Schmidt, a Canadian, said that because the sport is still relatively new here, fans are still learning what to cheer for.

“They won’t know all that stuff for a few years,” Schmidt said. “But noise is noise. It doesn’t bother you too much. It was just nice to have a crowd there.”

SPORTS, THE JOURNAL WAY

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